NEW YORK — The NFL league office and its major broadcast partners are reportedly bracing for a “worst-case scenario” regarding the final week of the 2025 regular season. Following the results of the Christmas Day tripleheader and early Week 17 outcomes, an unprecedented number of playoff seeds have already been locked in, leaving the Week 18 schedule—traditionally the league’s most dramatic window—with a startling lack of high-stakes matchups.
As of late December, eleven of the fourteen available playoff spots have been secured, and several divisions, including the AFC West and NFC West, have already crowned champions who cannot improve their seeding. This rare statistical anomaly means that many of the league’s most popular teams, including the Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks, are expected to rest their starters for the entirety of the final weekend.
The situation has caused significant concern for networks like NBC, ESPN, and CBS. The “Sunday Night Football” finale, which usually features a “win-and-in” scenario, currently lacks a clear candidate for a high-viewership game. Internal reports suggest the league is struggling to find a matchup that carries enough weight to justify the prime-time slot, as most remaining battles involve teams fighting for minor positioning rather than postseason survival.
“The 18-week schedule was designed to maximize late-season drama,” a sports media consultant noted. “But when you have a year like this where the top teams have dominated so thoroughly and the bubble teams have collapsed, you end up with a ‘lame duck’ weekend. It’s a nightmare for ratings and for the betting markets.”
Compounding the disaster is the fact that several teams already eliminated from contention are reportedly considering “evaluation mode,” starting rookie backups and practice squad players to preserve veterans for the 2026 season. This could result in a Week 18 slate featuring second- and third-string rosters across more than half of the league’s scheduled games.
The NFL is currently exploring creative flexible scheduling options to mitigate the impact. One potential solution involves moving games with even marginal playoff implications, such as the battle for the final AFC Wild Card spot, into the most prominent time slots. However, with the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers potentially having their fates decided before Week 18 even begins, the options are dwindling.
While fans of clinching teams are celebrating a stress-free end to the year, the “Week 18 disaster” highlights the potential downsides of the expanded schedule and the current disparity in league parity. The NFL is expected to announce the finalized Week 18 schedule following the conclusion of Sunday’s games, with executives hoping for a few upsets to keep the season’s final chapter relevant.
